After shave lotions, particularly those containing fragrances, are well known in the art. As used herein, after shave lotions are alcoholic compositions applied to the skin at any time in order to obtain desirable skin-feel characteristics.
Traditional after shave lotions contain significant levels of alcohol, typically from about 50% to about 90% ethanol, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,761,278, Lewis et al., issued Aug. 2, 1988 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,758,599, Minetti, issued Jul. 19, 1988; both herein incorporated herein by reference. While such lotions provide cooling and skin tightening, they also cause negative effects such as stinging and burning particularly to skin having just been shaved with a razor blade.
Alcoholic after shave lotions containing ingredients to off-set these negative effects are known in the art. U.S. Pat. No. 4,758,599, Minetti, issued Jul. 19, 1988 discloses hydro-alcoholic after shave lotions providing moisturization and protection from infection while mitigating skin irritation. Said compositions disclosed therein combine from about 50% to 90% lower alcohols, niacinamide (a commonly known vasodilator), sodium lactate (a moisturizer), quaternuim 26 (an emollient), and water. In an attempt to mitigate stinging and burning without the use of ingredients such as vasodilators, after shave lotions were formulated having significantly reduced levels of alcohol. U.S. Pat. No. 4,279,891, Henkel et al., issued Jul. 21, 1981 discloses clear after shave lotions containing from about 15% to about 20% ethanol, water, perfume, propylene glycol and ethoxylated alcohols, and betaine surfactant perfume solubilizer. These lotions require solubilizers to keep the perfume from separating from the low ethanol/water systems. Solubilization of perfumes in low ethanol ethanol/water based systems is disclosed in The HLB System, ICI Americas Incorporated, May 1992, incorporated herein by reference. These solubilizers, however, are responsible for skin irritation making these compositions less desirable.
South Africa Patent Application 666288, published Apr. 5, 1967 discloses anhydrous electric shaving aids including liquid compositions which offer users of electric razors an aid which helps to obtain a closer shave while tenderly treating the skin. Said compositions comprise at least 95% of a monovalent saturated aliphatic alcohol, up to 2.5% silicone oil and up to 2.5% of a cosmetically effective perfume which are incorporated in the composition without the use of emulsifiers. It is disclosed that these cosmetically effective perfumes may mainly be responsible for the fact that in spite of the high alcohol content, no symptoms of irritation have been found to occur.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,494, Krzysik et at, issued Nov. 3, 1992, incorporated herein by reference, discloses anhydrous, clear, emulsifier-free fragrance compositions comprising alcohol, perfume and volatile short chain alkylmethylsiloxane or a volatile cyclic alkylmethylsiloxane including those corresponding to the formulas ##STR1## in which the sum of the integers x and y is four, five or six, with the proviso that x and y cannot be zero; and z is an integer having a value of 1-12. Said anhydrous compositions do not contain emulsifiers or solubilizers to incorporate the perfumes into said compositions which results in compositions having significantly reduces skin irritation. The level of alcohols in such compositions is from 40% to 90% of the compositions. In addition to the silicones disclosed above, Krzysik disclosed that the compositions therein may contain additional volatile silicones which include volatile methylsilicone fluids having the formula (CH.sub.3).sub.3 SiO[(CH.sub.3).sub.2 SiO].sub.y Si(CH.sub.3).sub.3, wherein y is from zero to about 4. The examples disclosed therein shows compositions with cyclic, linear, and combinations of cyclic and linear alkylmethylsiloxanes with and without additional volatile methyl silicone fluids just disclosed. None of the examples disclosed therein contain only the additional volatile silicones just mentioned.
The additional volatile methyl silicone fluids disclosed in Krzysik include lower viscosity silicone oils disclosed by Dow Corning in their trade publications of 1987 and 1990 for Dow Coming 200, specifically 0.65 centistoke and 1.0 centistoke fluids. Said trade publications disclose that said fluids are useful in cosmetics compositions including fragrance compositions. Said fluids are soluble in ethanol and are non-greasy as well as non-stinging on the skin.
The present invention are anhydrous compositions wherein said compositions have superior skin feel when applied to the skin. Said compositions are less expensive than the compositions known in the art, and provide good skin care characteristics.